Forming The Future

Jascha Franklin-Hodge is the former Chief Information Officer for the City of Boston. Jascha was appointed by Mayor Martin Walsh to serve in the cabinet and to lead the Department of Innovation and Technology (DoIT). He created the City’s first Digital Team and their projects included the award-winning Boston.gov web site and BOS:311 mobile app. Prior to working for Boston, Jascha founded Blue State Digital where he oversaw the development of their online fundraising, email, and CRM platform that is used by a variety of not-for-profit and political clients — most notably the Obama campaigns in 2008 and 2012.

Dr. Amon Millner is an Assistant Professor of Computing and Innovation at Olin College directing the Extending Access to STEM Empowerment (EASE) Lab. His research and teaching is informed by his work in the Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) domain, drawing heavily from his specialization: developing tangible interactive systems for making and learning. He develops technology and community platforms to facilitate learners becoming empowered to make and make a difference in their neighborhoods. Millner creates engaging environments and tools that support learners of all ages increasing their capacity to innovate — leveraging a hands-on approach. Dr. Millner especially enjoys designing, developing, and deploying technological systems that allow novices to invent their own interactions between the physical world and the digital world. An example hardware interface is the PicoBoard (selling at sparkfun.com), a sensor board that Dr. Millner co-created while helping to invent the Scratch programming language. An exam

Aaron is a life-long advocate of healthier, cleaner food and was selected as a 2015 Eisenhower Fellow. During his fellowship he spent several months traveling through Europe and the Middle East to gain insight from the front-lines of an ever shrinking world where natural resource and water management have long been tightly linked to that region’s health, economy and national security. Aaron speaks and writes often of the unique opportunity for the population densities of the Northeast US to establish a new benchmark for domestic food-systems through promoting environmental and human health as the underpinning to rectify an addiction to cheap food. With a focus on collaborating with others to promote greater good, Aaron also co-founded the Agrarian fund; he hosts ‘Sourcing Matters’ a podcast focused on regenerative agriculture and future food systems; and he participates on numerous nonprofit boards ranging from food security to climate change to social responsibility. The Forming the Future podcast is hoste

Alec Resnick is Director and Co-Founder of Powderhouse Studios in Somerville Massachusetts. Powderhouse is one of a handful of winners of the XQ Super School Project — a nationwide organization focused on developing and funding innovative models for 21st century learning. Alec and the team behind Powderhouse won a ten million dollar grant from XQ to bring their concept for a new type of school to fruition. He is a graduate of MIT and has served as a consultant for many years with Sprout & Co. helping schools develop STEM and project-based learning programs. The Forming the Future podcast is hosted by Rusty Williams. A founder of multiple technologies companies and pioneer in the development of online communities and social media, Rusty now works for Triumph Modular and explores the intersection of technology and physical space with the goal of creating inspiring learning and work environments.

Chris Mallett is Vice President for Online Experiential Learning at Northeastern University. Chris leads the university’s online and hybrid learning strategies. He’s deeply involved in Northeastern University’s Professional Advancement Network which serves learners and employers through lifelong learning and custom talent development engagements. The Network features more than 200 online, hybrid, and campus-based professional programs and an exciting campus network with significant presence in Boston, Charlotte, Seattle, Silicon Valley, and Toronto. Before assuming his current responsibilities, Chris was instrumental to the establishment, growth, and success of Western Governors University, a pioneer in the delivery of online, competency-based education as scale. Listeners can learn more about Northeastern’s academic and strategic plan at northeastern.edu/2025 and are invited to contact Chris directly via Twitter @chrismallett  The Forming the Future podcast is hosted by Rusty Williams. A founder of multi